| Perry hopes Senate reverses school bills House dealt blow to plans Bush backed 04/06/2001 By Wayne Slater / The Dallas Morning News AUSTIN – Beaten by the House, Gov. Rick Perry looked Thursday to the Republican-dominated Senate to stop efforts to change education initiatives that George W. Bush passed as governor.
Mr. Perry expressed disappointment at House votes this week to put a moratorium on new charter schools and to delay the program to end automatic promotions of students in Texas schools. Both had been key elements of Mr. Bush's education agenda as governor.
"The Senate's still an important body to deal with in Texas," Mr. Perry told reporters. "I have an idea that they'll take a look at this piece of legislation and give it the appropriate look."
Rejecting moves by Perry lobbyists and GOP allies, the House on Thursday gave final approval to the charter school bill, which would delay for two years the creation of such publicly funded schools that operate largely independent of state regulations.
It now goes to the Senate.
Rep. Paul Sadler, chairman of the House Education Committee, cautioned Thursday that the charter bill "should not be dismissed out of hand by the governor or the Senate."
"The moratorium is a two-year breather that allows us to catch up and put in place safeguards so that we don't have people running off with taxpayer money," said Mr. Sadler, D-Henderson. "That's a responsible government function."
Mr. Sadler, who earlier in the session chided Mr. Perry for lack of leadership on the teacher health insurance issue, challenged the GOP governor's support for expanding a charter school system that gets millions of dollars in state money with limited accountability. At least seven charter schools have closed in the last two years for various reasons, including financial mismanagement and embezzlement.
Last summer, the Texas Education Agency gave an unacceptable rating to nearly one-fourth of 103 charter schools it studied.
"If you call yourself a fiscally conservative person, a watchdog for the taxpayer, how can you turn a blind eye to $260 million going to private individuals without any accountability to the state?" Mr. Sadler said.
He spearheaded House defiance of Mr. Perry this week in which members passed the school-related bills.
Perry associates described the actions as the most significant Democratic challenge to the governor since the legislative session began in January.
Democrats hold a 78-72 majority in the House. Republicans hold a one-vote edge in the 31-member Senate.
"In my State of the State address, I clearly stated that I supported expanding charter schools," Mr. Perry said Thursday. "A moratorium on charter schools would obviously be 180 degrees from my remarks in the State of the State."
The charter school bill adopted by the House would require campuses to adhere to several new requirements, including maintaining enrollment of 50 students and following state open meetings and open records laws.
Senate Education Chairman Teel Bivins, R-Amarillo, said he believed lawmakers should focus on increasing funding for new charter schools and raising the charter application requirements.
"I have not reached a decision on a moratorium," he said.
Staff writer Nancy San Martin contributed to this report.
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